Welcome to The Lid, your afternoon dose of the 2016 ethos…Video of an 8th grader delivering a graduation speech doing impressions of Donald Trump, Ted Cruz, Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders and President Obama has captivated the Internet in what may well become the only speech this campaign season that truly gives Americans hope about our children's futures.
Get The Lid straight to your inbox each afternoon -- click here to sign up.
‘16 from 30,000
There ain’t no party like a political party -- because a political party is filled tensions and infighting. At least if you’re Donald Trump and the RNC, according to some crack reporting from our own Katy Tur and Hallie Jackson. On the one-year anniversary of the start of Trump’s campaign, they report there is growing frustrations between Team Trump and the Republican National Committee. There certainly has been no shortage of examples of Trump and members of the GOP not being on the same page since he became the presumptive nominee, but the battle here has to do more directly with the nuts and bolts of running a national campaign. At the heart of the issue, sources tell NBC News, is that Trump continues to remain committed to the same strategy that won him the primaries. He has failed to staff up and RNC officials say they feel as though they are viewed skeptically as meddlers rather than potential resources.
Democrats, meanwhile, certainly have their own unity problems as Bernie Sanders (as of now) has not endorsed Clinton and is calling for new leadership at the DNC. But the Clinton campaign’s move Thursday to place an ally as DNC chief of staff indicates they are so far weathering the disunity much more effectively. And there is little doubt Team Clinton is prepared to put forth the resources it will take to wage a 50-state campaign.
POPPING ON NBC POLITICS
- Tensions are growing between Donald Trump's campaign and the Republican National Committee as the presumptive GOP nominee's operation proves sluggish to adopt suggestions from party leaders, NBC News’ Katy Tur and Hallie Jackson reports.
- Hillary Clinton solidified her influence over the DNC by naming the SEIU’s Brandon Davis chief of staff.
- John McCain had to walk back comments saying Obama was “directly responsible” for the Orlando shooting.
- After 49 people were killed at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando on June 12, a new poll finds that one in four—24 percent—Americans ranked terrorism as the issue that matters most to them right now.
- Republicans are begging defeated presidential candidate Marco Rubio to forget about his pledge not to run for reelection and instead seek a second term as Florida senator, NBC’s Perry Bacon reports.
- Cory Booker told NBC’s Andrea Mitchell he isn’t be being vetted for VP.
- Paul Ryan said he has no plans to back away from his Trump endorsement.
- John Kasich said he’s not interested in playing spoiler at the RNC next month.
- In this week’s PRESS Pass, NBC News’ Jordan Frasier reports on how much George Washington’s legacy could define the next president.
- And from First Read: Hillary Clinton begins her battleground ad blitz.
FOR THE RECORD…
“I can't predict the future. This is the craziest political year that you and I have ever seen.”
-- Ohio Gov. John Kasich interview on Morning Joe.
TOMORROW’S SKED
Donald Trump holds a campaign rally in Houston Friday night.
